A vehicle tire generally has two annular bead rings at the innermost diameter, which provides the tire with hoop strength and structural integrity. The bead rings also provide stiffness at the point where the tire mounts to a rim. Bead rings are generally manufactured by winding metal wire in a groove on the outer periphery of a chuck or drum. Existing equipment is capable of forming a plurality of bead rings on the outer periphery of a single chuck or drum at once. For example, bead rings may be formed on equipment incorporating components from commercially available products such as the SWS-6000 Bead Winding System or the SWS-4000T Bead Winding System, each of which are manufactured by Bartell Machinery Systems, L.L.C. of Rome, N.Y.
The bead ring is often attached to a strip made of rubber or another synthetic material. This strip is generally called an apex or filler. The apex or filler generally is applied to the outer periphery of the bead ring and provides a smooth transitional juncture between each bead and the adjacent side wall of the vehicle tire. An apex is generally applied to a bead ring through the use of automatic rubber extrusion and profiling equipment and equipment for wrapping the apex or filler around the bead ring and seaming the two free ends of the strip together.
Currently, the processes of forming a bead ring and applying an apex or filler to form a bead-apex assembly are distinct and performed on separate equipment. This causes significant material handling and inventory burdens, and significant labor is needed to unload bead rings from bead forming equipment and load them onto apex application equipment. Further, a high degree of repeatability is difficult to achieve due to human involvement in unloading, loading, and transfer between equipment. Separate equipment also consumes a significant amount of floor space.